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TWO NEW JERSEY EXECUTIVES AGREE TO PLEAD GUILTY IN NATIONWIDE SCHEME TO DEFRAUD THE FEDERAL E-RATE PROGRAM

Conspirators Engaged in Mail Fraud and Wire Fraud, and Made False Statements

WASHINGTON — Co-owners of a New Jersey-based computer service provider have
agreed to plead guilty to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the Federal Communications
Commission's (FCC) E-Rate program, the Department of Justice announced today.

Conspiracy charges were filed today in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan.,
against Benjamin Rowner and Jay H. Soled, former owners of DeltaNet Inc., for their role in
defrauding the E-Rate program. Rowner and Soled conspired to defraud the E-Rate program by
submitting false statements and concealing material facts from the Universal Service
Administrative Company, which administers the E-Rate Program for the FCC. In some instances,
these false statements were submitted by wire transmission, email and U.S. mail. The conspiracy
began in 1999 and ran at least until 2003, affecting schools from New York to California. Under
the terms of their plea agreements, which are subject to court approval, the two men have agreed
to cooperate with the Department's ongoing investigation.

E-Rate, a program authorized by Congress in the Telecommunications Act of 1996,
provides funding to economically disadvantaged school districts and libraries to connect to and
utilize the Internet. Under the E-Rate program, schools can receive money for cabling, Internet
backbone equipment (i.e., servers, PBX and switches), and the reimbursement of monthly Internet
and telephone connectivity service fees.

"The Antitrust Division will vigorously prosecute those who are involved in fraudulent
schemes that take funds away from federal programs and disrupt the competitive process," said
Thomas O. Barnett, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department's Antitrust Division.

As a result of the Antitrust Division's investigation into fraud and anticompetitive conduct
in the E-Rate Program, a total of six companies and 12 individuals have pleaded guilty, have been
convicted and found guilty, or entered civil settlements and have paid, agreed to pay, or been
sentenced to pay, criminal fines and restitution totaling more than $40 million. Trials are currently
pending in three additional E-Rate cases, and one individual remains an international fugitive.

"Our investment in this investigation is paying off," said Dr. Kent R. Nilsson, Inspector
General of the Federal Communications Commission. "Every unlawful dollar obtained by
individuals and companies deprives impoverished schools of much-needed funding, and we, along
with the DOJ and FBI, will continue to aggressively pursue those who would steal from the E-Rate fund."

"The FBI played a key role in this matter," noted Tom Dalton, Acting Supervisory
Special Agent, FBI White Collar Crime Squad, Kansas City, Mo., "and the investigation was
conducted in a spirit of cooperation with several other agencies."

The conspiracy charges each carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a
$250,000 fine for individuals. The maximum fine may be increased to twice the gain derived from
the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either amount is greater than the
statutory maximum fine.

The charges announced today resulted from an ongoing investigation by the Antitrust
Division, the FBI, the FCC concerning fraud committed on the E-Rate program and with
assistance from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Kansas. Anyone with information
concerning violations of the E-Rate Program or other anticompetitive conduct is urged to call the
Chicago Field Office of the Antitrust Division at 312-353-7530.